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Wednesday, 7 March 2012

Banana Cinnamon Crepes

When I first met the man who would be my husband, I had no idea about the rich culture that he carried with him, in fact I had given it no thought whatsoever. I had heard him talk about his cousins in Trinidad, and soon after we started dating I learned about the Sri Lankan side of his family. Before long, I was intrigued. My husband's heritage is a vibrant and interesting one and I was keen to learn more about it.

I was particularly fascinated by the food (natch), and after sampling Sri Lankan food (thanks to a couple of very talented Aunties and one Sri Lankan restaurant) I was hooked. The deep, intense roasted curry powder, heavy use of chillies and, of course, cinnamon seduced me and I was determined to cook this cuisine for myself. I have found that most Sri Lankan dishes that use flour call for rice or lentil flour, so are naturally gluten free. I am still learning and discovering new ingredients (I'm Scottish - before all of this, coconut was just part of the coating on a Tunnocks Snowball) and I'm enjoying every moment.

That said, any Sri Lankans reading this post might want to look away now. This recipe is very loosely inspired by hoppers, which use a fermented batter made with yeast, rice flour and coconut milk. I say loosely, and I mean it, this is in no way an authentic recipe.

This month, the Gluten-Free Ratio is focusing on crepes. T.R. over at No One Likes Crumbley Cookies is hosting this event, so pop over there to see the full round-up.

The ratio for crepes is 1:2:2. That's 1 part flour : 2 parts egg : 2 parts liquid. This ratio worked well for me, but some of the others in the rally have altered theirs in some way. You are basically looking for a batter with the consistency of heavy cream, so depending on what flour you use you might have to adjust the amount of liquid slightly. I was a little worried that the coconut milk I was using might change the way the batter cooked, but I was pleased to see that it worked in the same way as milk, but with the pleasing aroma of coconut wafting from the crepe pan!

Banana Cinnamon Crepes

2 eggs

56g brown rice flour

114ml coconut milk (the thin stuff - if you have coconut cream, dilute it with equal parts water)

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

2 bananas, sliced

3 tbsp golden caster sugar mixed with 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Whisk together the eggs, flour and cinnamon until the mixture is smooth, with no lumps.

Add the coconut milk and whisk again until smooth. Leave the batter to rest for 30 minutes, to allow the flour to absorb some liquid.

Heat a non-stick frying-pan on a medium flame and brush lightly with oil (or use a piece of kitchen towel) to just coat the pan. Give the batter a quick mix and pour approximately a quarter of it (about 1/3 cup) into the pan and swirl the pan to cover the surface with the batter.

You will know the crepe is ready to turn when the surface begins to bubble and the crepe comes away from the pan easily. Turn the crepe and cover half of the, now cooked, surface with slice banana and sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the whole surface.

Fold the crepe in half to cover the banana and turn out on to a plate.

Mmm, now you've got me fascinated by Sri Lankan food. Based on your descriptions of it, I'm thinking I would LOVE it. How wonderful that so much of it is naturally gluten-free! And your crepes sound delicious, too. I love baking with coconut, especially for the smell it fills my kitchen with!